Robert Flores found guilty in 2007 death of baby daughter

LAS CRUCES — More than five years after a Las Cruces man found his baby girl unresponsive in a laundry basket filled with unfolded clothes, a jury found him guilty of charges related to the tragic death.

An Albuquerque jury Thursday convicted Robert J. Flores, 28, of negligent child abuse resulting in death and tampering with evidence, prosecutors said. Those 2007 crimes carry a maximum combined penalty of 21 years in prison, though Flores likely won't be sentenced until next month.

The jury reached its decision in less than three hours, at about 2:15 p.m. Afterward, officials took Flores into custody with a bond set at $100,000.

Prosecutor Jacinto Palomino said he was pleased with the outcome.

"It seems like the jury followed our facts and believed our version of what happened," he said.

That version shadowed the Las Cruces Police Department's investigation and was explained, broadly, in a criminal complaint filed in 2007.

Flores told police, according to court documents, that in December of 2007 he was at home, watching his daughter and drinking beer.

He didn't want to take his baby with him when he went to get more beer, and he didn't want neighbors to hear her crying, so, documents state, Flores placed her in a laundry basket, on a pile of unfolded clothes in the master bedroom closet.

Hours later, after completing his late-night shopping, watching movies and drinking more beer, Flores checked on his girl.

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She was unresponsive - doctors testified this week that the child had been dead at least and hour upon arriving at MountainView Regional Medical Center.

Defense attorneys contended that the baby could have died of SIDS. Flores' attorney, Mark Pickett, was not available to comment on the verdict.

The New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator ruled in 2008 that asphyxia caused the death of the baby, Kaylynne Flores, though OMI did not opine on the manner of the death.

Several legal maneuvers from the defense and prosecution delayed the trial. At one point a judge recused himself from the trial.

Defense attorneys successfully moved to have the trail relocated, arguing that the media coverage had tainted the Las Cruces jury pool. Aside from the media coverage, Flores was well-known by some for being a star high school football quarterback in Artesia.

In July the state Supreme Court declined to review, at the state's urging, an appellate court evidence decision. The appeals court called prejudicial the explanation of why Flores left the house that night - to buy beer. That part was not explained to the jury, as first determined by District Judge Fernando Macias.

District Attorney Mark D'Antonio, who took office in January, beamed at the work of the prosecutors assigned to the case.

"I'm extremely proud of RoxAnne Esquibel and Jacinto Palomino," said D'Antonio, who watched a day of the trail in Albuquerque last week.

"They took a very difficult and old case and did an excellent job presenting the facts to the jury and getting a just result."

D'Antonio praised Esquibel, one of a handful of prosecutors who stayed in the office after the departure of former district attorney Amy Orlando, and Palomino, a former judge, as his "top" attorneys.

He also lauded the work of LCPD.

James Staley may be reached at 575-541-5476. Follow him on Twitter @auguststaley.